Sydnie |She/her| 23 --- howdy y'all ⭐ Currently working on a series of Greek mythology characters ⭐ Please do not repost my art without permission and credit. ⭐ Most active on Instagram (also @sydnieminty)
Bonus Dionysus drawings + doodle of Dionysus getting drunk and trauma dumping to Hephaestus lmao
"Sorry my mom manipulated your mom into convincing Zeus to show her his true form resulting in her death and by extension almost caused you to be still born" 🤝 "Sorry my dad is a dick who mutilated you as a child and continues to treat you like shit"
I feel like their relationship is ALMOST romantic but like maybe falling just short of that. Like Dionysus flirts a lot (which to be real he flirts with everyone a bit lol) and Hephaestus likes it but neither really take the initiative beyond that. They have a complicated relationship lol
Also kitty :) Dionysus' pet leopard. I need to give her a name
I've only really drawn happy drunk Dionysus so I wanted to make something that showed the other side of his personality
I remember when I first got into Greek mythology reading that Dionysus was also the god of madness and I was like ok, like going crazy drunk or what and then reading about him possessing his followers, driving people to insanity, or tearing apart live animals or PEOPLE and then EATING THEIR FLESH RAW?? I was like Dio chill 😭
There's a myth I can't remember the exact details to but it was something like a king goes to Dionysus and is like "Could you maybe stop taking women up to mountains to throw massive ragers where you get drunk and tear apart live animals with your bare hands, it's kind of freaking people out" and then Dionysus is like "You are extremely fucking selfish" and then drove the guy to go crazy and cut his own limbs off or something. Don't get in the way of Dionysus' good time i guess
I like to think this is his "true" self, untamed and wild and bloodthirsty, and that the other gods are always trying to placate him with wine to keep him in a happy/sleepy drunk state to keep him from going off and causing chaos lol
Cannot stop thinking about this game, it's amazing.
This scene in particular was unforgettable. The dead pixel. The fact that the dead pixel represents Jimmy. He's always there. Curly can't see it, only seeing the "big picture". ""Safety"" I'm pulling my hair out, you guys
Dionysus doesn't give af about gender norms lol Dionysus and Hephaestus are buddies. They spent their adolescence together, being both raised by Thetis at the time. They were basically like "oh, another bastard of Zeus? He's my stepdad. We're stepbrothers now" Dionysus returns to Olympus when he reaches adulthood, and later convinces Hephaestus to do the same.
Hephaestus, God of Fire, Craftsmen, Volcanoes, and the Forge 🌋🛡️🔥
Hephaestus is the most "imperfect" of the gods. He hates being pitied and spends most of his time trying to prove he is enough. He uses his gift for metalworking to have functioning arms and legs made of gold that he can shape as a sculptor shapes clay. All precious things that form deep in the Earth bend to his will.
Ares and Hephaestus hate each other. Most of it stems from Hera's obvious favoritism towards Ares. And Hephaestus can't help but hate that Ares is a son of Zeus.
Hephaestus thinks Ares is undeserving of Hera's praise while Ares thinks he's done more than enough to be number one in her eyes. Hera failed Hephaestus. She failed to keep him safe from Zeus and instead of trying to do better, she gave him up to Thetis. While probably the best course of action at the time, it's undeniable it had a considerable impact on Hephaestus. However, Thetis did raise him with love and he had a decent enough childhood from then on.
Ares was different. When he stood his ground against Zeus, his father was, well, terrified. But there was still a price to pay. There's a reason that his other brothers don't bear the scars that he and Hephaestus have. Hephaestus can't help but feel resentful that it was Ares who finally got to put Zeus in his place. And that he wasn't there to see it happen.
Hephaestus leaves his scars exposed. Ares tends to hide his beneath his cloak.
They both see bad qualities in each other that are reflected in their own selves, and it pisses them off more.
All of this is becomes much more amplified when the events with Aphrodite go down.
Ares telling Hera about a cool snake he saw outside :)
Hera is quite young here, Ares is one of her first children if not THE first (not decided yet, still debating on the order of birth I'm gonna go with) she's a lot happier because most of the shit she's gonna go through has not happened yet. For now, she's just happy to be raising her son.
Hera, Goddess of Marriage, Women, and the Stars of Heaven ✨🦚
Hera is by nature a serene and nurturing goddess but given how she is treated by Zeus, she rarely gets to present that side of herself. Centuries of affairs and humiliation have made her into a very bitter, resentful, and angry goddess. She lashes out often and with great intensity, having no healthy way to process her anger. She can do nothing to Zeus and so often ends up punishing the innocent women or bastard children caught up in his affairs. As much as she tries she cannot turn a blind eye to his actions. She mourns the peaceful eternity she dreamed of when she was young.
I left Ares' portrait on the rougher side because well.. he IS rougher, whereas I tried to give Aphrodite a smooth, porcelain look. Also she is in shadow, whereas he is more catching the light. I wanted them to look very opposite, but both matching each other in regards for their craving for blood
also including this artwork that I based the first pose on under the cut because I saw it and I was like omfg that's so cute:
Dionysus, God of Wine, Vegetation, and Madness 🍷🍇🌿
Guess I'm just gonna draw the whole pantheon at this point idfk you guys
I probably should have done Hephaestus next but my idea for Dionysus was clearer
Almost every Dionysus design I've seen has him with purple hair so I was like maybe I'll try green? I think it turned out nicely. It's a dark color that shines green where the light catches, vines and laurels are always sprouting from his head. You can tell this mf does NOT own a hair brush
His skin is a purplish tone because… grapes lol but also in a corpsey way? I think Dionysus' twice-born aspect and ties to the underworld are interesting so I want to lean into that.
Whenever Dionysus is around, things are certainly never dull. He's almost always in some drunken state of mania, the few times he is not is a bit disturbing to those that know him. He has many worshippers and is often found reveling in the gifts they offer. He's a bit of a weirdo, but has an undeniable charm to those around him.
Also including an Aphrodite ref sheet that I've had 90% finished for like the last 8 months but hadn't bothered to finish until just recently lol
Anyways buckle up because I'm about to start YAPPIN
I wasn't sure how this was gonna go at first because I don't have a lot of experience with designing male characters and it's not something I typically enjoy but I really like how he turned out and I really enjoyed the process. I was like wait this is fun actually, it's different than what I usually draw.
I've been wanting to do something with Ares for a long time because I think he's really slept on in the Greek mythology community. I think Ares and Aphrodite probably have the healthiest relationship in Greek mythology and I've always found it interesting that the ancient Greeks paired Love with War
I've seen people talk shit about Aphrodite like "oh she cheats on her husband, that's so shitty" like,, you mean the husband she was forced to marry? Ok... But on that note I think Aphrodite and Hephaestus's marriage is interesting and it is something I plan on doing something with. Hephaestus is another one of the few seemingly upstanding men in Greek mythology so I feel like he treats Aphrodite with respect and they find love between each other after some time, in their own way.
Something I always think about is Ares is such a good dad?? He's often depicted in statues with Eros and in war is almost always accompanied by Deimos and Phobos. like yes, spend quality time with your children, so cute <3 Also he supports his Amazon daughters. He unalives a man who assaulted his daughter and it pisses off Poseidon so bad that they INVENT court to put him on trial just for Ares to go "Yeah I did it, and I'd fuckin do it again" and gets acquitted
Back to my Ares design. I thought it would be interesting if his scars were transient, as in not really permanent scars but more like very slowly healing wounds filling with ichor. The only way he can scar permanently is if the injury is inflicted on him by another immortal...
Stole the glowy hair from Disney's Hercules because that shit is peak character design
I was not going to draw any helmets at first because... I didn't want to lol but I read that he like almost always had his helmet. Like he's showing up to fancy dinners carrying his helmet. So I was like okay fine have your emotional support helmet lol
His spear is a gift from Aphrodite, it has a little heart design engraved into it <3 I find Warlike Aphrodite VERY interesting and I like to imagine her having a surprisingly strong affinity for conflict
Personality wise, Ares tries to put up a tough guy "whatever. I don't care act" but he is actually very much a people pleaser and has a distinct desire to be accepted. He is keenly aware that he is not well liked among the gods nor the mortals. He is not the beloved, wise, tactical Athena. He is Bloodlust and Carnage, he is the ugliest sides of war. To most mortals he is a god to appease, not worship.
He loves his mother, and he is her favorite child. He has spent his life defending her, even as a child and even against his father. He is not well liked by his father, but this is typical of Zeus, who is paranoid that one of his sons will eventually continue the family's proclivity for patricide.
Anyways thank you for reading my essay. I will be making more Aphrodite/Ares content very soon. I hope you enjoy
ellievsbear